Supreme Court's Meta Dilemma: A Legal Sidestep

The U.S. Supreme Court avoided a direct decision on a securities fraud lawsuit involving Facebook. It left the lower court's ruling intact, which permits shareholders, led by Amalgamated Bank, to pursue claims against Meta. The justices decided the case shouldn't have been elevated to their level.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday chose to sidestep a crucial decision regarding a securities fraud lawsuit accusing Meta Platforms' Facebook of deceiving investors about its handling of user data. The justices heard arguments for the case on November 6.

They ultimately dismissed Facebook's appeal to overturn a lower court's ruling, which allows shareholders led by Amalgamated Bank to continue with their 2018 class action against the social media giant.

By not resolving the central legal question, the Supreme Court effectively supported the decision of the lower court, indicating the case shouldn't have been escalated to begin with.

(With inputs from agencies.)